This invention relates to postage meters and more particularly to printwheel and/or date setting mechanisms for postage meters.
Automatic selection of postage values from a keyboard has typically been accomplished in the past using either two methods. In one method, a first actuator positions a printwheel drive mechanism at each of several printwheels for individually setting each printwheel, normally by using a second actuator to position the digits of the printwheel. A typical example of an electronic mailing machine utilizing such an arrangement is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,054 to Buan, et al., entitled STAND-ALONE ELECTRONIC MAILING MACHINE.
While such devices have worked well in conventional postage meters, there are disadvantages of such a selection method for setting a plurality of printwheels. The shift mechanism is extremely complex and creates problem in meeting the tolerances associated with the accurate positioning of the digit selector actuator and there can be problems in the mechanism hanging-up while shifting between printwheels. There is a further problem in high throughput applications because the time required to shift between multiple wheels limits the speed with which the postage meter can be set.
Postage meters using the second method provide parallel setting mechanisms for setting several printwheels at the same time. Such a postage meter is shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,398,458. This patent also teaches a date-setting device utilizing similar the illustrated mechanism. In a design such as this, in addition to the costs associated with using more actuators, there is the physical problem associated with spacing of the comparatively large actuator mechanisms and proper alignment with the closely spaced printwheels.
Such problems are particularly difficult in respect of printwheels for printing dates.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a small-volume, low-cost solution to the problem of fabrication for an assembly for providing a drive motor associated with each printwheel for printwheel setting.